


The Angelus Killer

by Bluewolf458



Category: The Sentinel (TV)
Genre: Gen, Sentinel Bingo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-15
Updated: 2018-10-15
Packaged: 2019-08-02 11:55:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16304726
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bluewolf458/pseuds/Bluewolf458
Summary: A problem from Rafe's past is finally resolved





	The Angelus Killer

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the 2018 Sentinel bingo prompt 'wild card' this is a sequel to an earlier prompt (locked in), a story called A New Identity.

Prompt: Wild card 

type of fanwork: story   sequel to A New Identity (card 4)

title: The Angelus Killer

link: 

Genre (slash/gen): gen

Word count: 5002

The Angelus Killer

by Bluewolf

Despite everything he tried, despite everything - or nothing - his snitches could discover - Jim found nothing that helped identify the killer who called himself 'Angelus'.

In the two weeks after Rafe sent his anonymous letter to Gabriel Angelus, there were five more deaths where arum lilies, accompanied by a card signed 'Angelus', arrived at the funeral - plus the mysterious death of a sixth, a man known to the police, though not well, whose body had not been released; Dan Wolf was still checking it to try to determine the cause of death. But, of course, they wouldn't know if it was an 'Angelus' death until the funeral.

***

Rafe was sitting at his desk going through several witness statements regarding a hit and run a couple of days previously.

Normally this would be handled by a unit in Patrol, but the victim was a man of some influence in Cascade, and there was a certain amount of proof that it wasn't an accident. Several of the witnesses insisted that the car was driven deliberately at the victim - even where some of their other 'facts' disagreed, on that one point they were all in agreement.

Unfortunately, none of them had been able to provide a license number for the car.

"Good morning, Rafael." The unexpected sound of the name he hadn't used for nearly fifteen years made Rafe jump... especially as the quiet voice sounded familiar. He looked up...

"Father." He breathed the word, almost afraid to use it; loud enough for The Man to hear, too soft for anyone else to hear it.

"Is there somewhere we can speak in private?"

"Yes." Rafe stood, and led the way to an interview room. He flicked the switch that would let anyone wanting to use one of the rooms know that this one was occupied. "I'm afraid the chairs aren't very comfortable," he went on. "But we can be assured of privacy."

Gabriel Angelus sat. "I assume it was you who sent me the unsigned letter I received three weeks ago."

"Yes, sir. I know it was breaching the agreement I made with you, but I thought it was something you needed to know."

"You covered your steps well," Gabriel said. "It has taken me this long to find you - even although I knew the name you chose to use.

"And yes; our name is an unusual one; I am less than happy that a killer has apparently adopted it. It might eventually have come to my attention; it might not, but that does not alter the misuse of it."

 _'Our' name,_ Rafe thought. "Even although I no longer use the name, I was not pleased," he said.

"And so you chose to let me know. I applaud your initiative, my son."

'My son'. His father was - at least between them - acknowledging their relationship, despite what he had said years previously.

"Thank you, Father." The least he could do was show that he accepted that acknowledgement. Rafe was silent for a moment, then went on. "Investigating the case has not fallen to me; I am in the second team. Our top team was given the task of trying to trace the man, and James Ellison is an extremely talented detective. He and his partner have not confirmed it, but the personnel in Major Crime have good reason to believe that Detective Ellison is a sentinel."

"A sentinel? But... If he is indeed a sentinel, why not confirm it?"

"There are several reasons. This is a different world to the one you live in. Sentinels are not, in general, known about here. So why do we think Ellison is a sentinel? It's a long story. If Ellison were to confirm it, he would be the only known sentinel in the United States... and therefore would become an automatic target for the criminals we hunt; they would fear that he could hear and see things far beyond the scope of what sentinels can actually see and hear, and employ men to kill him. It is safer for him to maintain secrecy, even here among men he trusts."

Gabriel Angelus nodded slowly. "I think I understand," he said. "So - he has not had any success in finding this man?"

"No. The man has covered his steps very carefully, and he has been very quiet for the last two weeks. Ellison has been watching carefully - it's possible that whoever it is knows that Ellison has been assigned to the case and is acting accordingly; lying low for a while in the hope that he will be 'forgotten'. It is equally possible that he has moved elsewhere - serial killers often do - but I understand that Captain Banks has contacted the police in all the other Washington cities and asked to be advised if they have something similar happening."

"There is one thing I do not understand about this," Gabriel said. "The name 'Angelus' has been used on the arum lilies sent to the funerals of all these murdered men."

"Yes."

"What makes the police think that whoever is doing that is also the killer?"

"Much of it is the publicity - or, rather, the lack of publicity - concerning the murders. After the first six incidents the police asked the papers to say nothing - but the lilies from 'Angelus' were still delivered on the day of the funeral. Not even the florists who delivered the flowers saw the man who ordered them; the order, payment and a card to be attached to the flowers were always in an envelope delivered to the shop after it closed for the day. And yes, we mounted surveillance on the shops, but this is only one of many cases being investigated and it's impossible to keep watch on all the florists in Cascade all the time.

"It seems that this man has contacts that let him know much of what is happening in Cascade even when it isn't publicized. Even the police are not always immune to an offer of money for information; there can be a few bad apples in any barrel. And even an otherwise honest policeman could be tempted by an offer of payment for apparently harmless information - a man claiming to be a freelance journalist who had heard about the earlier cases writing a continuing article about this killer, planning on submitting it somewhere when the man is eventually caught - perhaps to a magazine like True Crime."

"You think, then, that he will be caught?" Gabriel asked.

"Ellison is very good." It wasn't exactly a straight answer, but Gabriel nodded acceptance of it.

"Keep me informed," he said. "I am staying at the Hyatt, using the name George Anderson. And... I would appreciate it if you joined me for dinner tonight. 7pm?"

"Thank you, Father. I would be very happy to join you."

***

The meal wasn't quite an unqualified success; over their soup, Gabriel Angelus made it clear that he regretted 'disowning' his son, and was indeed very glad to see him again.

Rafe, however, was a little less sure about resuming contact, but knew he would be wise to meet his father half-way, although he added, "By insisting that I break all contact, you forced me to depend on myself. I could have chosen to live off the money you gave me - it was a generous amount - but it was true what I said; I did want to work, to provide for myself. And I think I have made a reasonable success of my life, even although I'm not in Major Crime's top team."

"If you are correct about Detective Ellison, you would only have been in the top team as his partner," Gabriel said very quietly.

Rafe nodded. "I know." He took a deep breath, then changed the subject a little. "Do you have any thoughts about who, in this country, might choose to link your - our - name to these killings?"

"I have many enemies," he said. "Most are relatively ineffectual, but there are one or two who could give me problems if the opportunity arose." He fell silent as the waiters brought their next course, then gave it his undivided attention for two or three minutes. Finally, he added, "To the best of my knowledge, none of those who could give me problems are in America."

Rafe swallowed a succulent mouthful. "Father, may I introduce you to Detective Ellison? He - or his civilian partner, who is amazingly insightful - might have one or two questions for you about those enemies, and see a link that you do not."

"A civilian?" Gabriel sounded more than a little surprised, and Rafe mentally gave himself points for managing to breach Gabriel's normally rigid self-control.

"Sandburg started off as a ride along studying the police, but almost immediately we discovered that he could see details that everyone else missed. Ellison was very good before Sandburg was partnered with him; with Sandburg there, I don't think there's anything that Ellison can't solve, as long as he has the facts. The problem with this case is that he doesn't have the facts." Rafe turned his attention back to his meal.

Again they ate in silence for a minute, than Gabriel said, "Very well, I will speak to this Detective and his civilian partner."

"It might be best to visit them tonight after we have finished our meal," Rafe said. "That way we can be sure of seeing Sandburg. He spends as much time as he can with us, but he also works at Rainier University - he's a TA there - a Teaching Associate. He assists one of the tenured professors, teaches some classes while he works for his PhD."

"It might be possible to visit one, but surely by then it would be too late to visit the other?"

"They live together," Rafe said. "Sandburg rents Ellison's spare room. It was supposed to be temporary, just for a week or so until Sandburg found somewhere - there was an explosion in the building where he was living, and it was very badly damaged; Ellison agreed to give him a bed for a few nights - but they found they enjoyed the company, and Sandburg never moved out. I don't think Ellison charges him more than a token rent - they are very good friends."

***

They didn't rush the rest of their meal, and it was close to 9pm before they finished. Knowing he would have to drive home, at the very least, Rafe had drunk sparingly, limiting himself to one glass of the excellent wine that accompanied the meal, and he was confident that his alcohol level was legal, though he wouldn't have said as much for his father, who had drunk most of the bottle. Gabriel, however, had a high tolerance for wine, and was showing no sign of the amount he had imbibed.

Rafe had no reason to think his father would criticize his car, and he was right; Gabriel nodded when he saw it. "A good choice," he said. "An excellent make of car, but not so top of the range that it would make your fellows wonder how you could afford it."

"I've always watched that," Rafe said as he started the car. "A detective's salary, while reasonable, doesn't permit too much luxury." He grinned. "I actually got this car for a very good price - every now and then cars that have been impounded are sold, and when I saw this one... Well, I didn't hesitate. Everyone knows I got it from Impound, so they all know it didn't cost me too much."

"Intelligent," Gabriel said, his voice approving.

They said nothing more as Rafe drove through the streets. It wasn't too long before he pulled up and carefully parked.

Gabriel looked around. "This looks quite a respectable area."

Rafe nodded. "Ellison is like me," he said.

"A man from a rich family who chose to make his own way?"

"Yes." He led the way through the front door and over to the elevator.

***

The door of apartment 307 was opened the instant Rafe knocked on it, and the two visitors found themselves facing a tall man who was holding a gun.

"Oh - Rafe! What brings you here?" More than half of Jim's attention was on Rafe's unknown companion.

"Can we come in?" Rafe asked quietly.

Jim looked at him for a moment longer, then nodded. Rafe led his father over to the couches, and encouraged him to sit on the empty one, then sank down beside him. Having locked the door, Jim followed them, to sit beside Blair.

"This is Gabriel Angelus," Rafe said quietly. "Sir, I would like you to meet Detective Ellison and Blair Sandburg."

Gabriel nodded in acknowledgement. "Brian tells me that you are investigating the man who is calling himself 'Angelus'."

Jim glanced at Rafe, who gave a shaky smile. "Yes," he said. "But he is covering his tracks extremely well. The only thing that can be said in his favor is that all of his victims are known criminals."

"And the flowers he sends?"

"The order and money for them is always put through a letter box during the night. We've tried mounting surveillance, but there are a lot of flower shops in Cascade and so far he has never used the same one twice."

"And the flowers he sends are always arum lilies?"

"Yes."

Gabriel glanced at his son. "I did not doubt what you told me," he said, "but I am now sure that whoever this is is trying in some way to discredit me - perhaps through you, even although you are a detective."

"But how could anyone know about me?" Rafe asked.

"It is possible that we were being watched, even before you left home. That someone followed you, and once you were established here... began his campaign to try to discredit our name."

Jim and Blair glanced at each other. What was being said here did not totally match what Rafe had said when he first mentioned Gabriel Angelus.

"The one thing that makes me certain of this is the arum lilies. Those were the flowers I used to bid goodbye to your mother."

Rafe stared at his father. "You... you are acknowledging me in front of witnesses?"

"I made a mistake. I admit that now."

"Rafe?" Blair said, almost tentatively.

It was Gabriel who answered. "When Rafael came to America I told him that he was no longer my son. He changed his name, and made no attempt to contact me, adhering to the terms I gave him when he left. But when this 'Angelus' appeared, he sent me an anonymous letter about it. When I received it, I knew there was only one person who could have sent it. I knew the name he had chosen to use and tracked him down...

"But I realized within days of his departure that I had made a mistake. I loved him, although I had never admitted it even to myself until it was too late." He looked at his son. "I will not ask you to abandon the life you have made for yourself here; all I ask is that you do stay in touch with me now that we have met again."

"Gladly, Father," Rafe said, and went willingly into Gabriel's tentatively offered embrace.

***

The four men settled down to discuss what Jim and Blair had discovered about 'Angelus'.

"Can you think of anyone who might want to - well, misuse your name?" Blair asked.

"In America - no," Gabriel said. "In my own land, yes - I am a man of influence, and as such I do have enemies. But if Rafael had not been here, who here would have thought to link the name 'Angelus' to me?"

"When I left home, the only person who knew the name I had chosen to use was my father, and the papers he obtained for me using that name were absolutely foolproof," Rafe added. "So it wasn't someone seeking to discredit me, and by so doing embarrassing him."

"Can you be sure of that?" Blair asked. "Yes, you use 'Rafe' as a surname, but the resemblance between that and 'Rafael', especially linked with 'Angelus'... Someone might have noticed that."

Rafe shook his head. "I really didn't think anyone would see a resemblance between 'Rafael' and 'Rafe', especially with 'Rafe' used as a second name," he said. "And my father didn't see one when I chose it or he would have told me to choose a different name. But I wanted to retain something of my own name." He glanced apologetically at Gabriel, and was surprised by the happiness he saw on his father's face.

"I did see it," Gabriel said. "And guessed that you wanted to keep something of your own name. I was surprised how pleased I was about it. But at the time, nothing would have persuaded me to admit to it."

They fell silent for a moment, Jim and Blair both willing to give the other two their moment.

When father and son turned their attention back to Jim and Blair, Jim said thoughtfully, "Rafe - back when you first spoke about Mr. Angelus, you said that to the best of your knowledge he had never killed anyone, but that if he had... "

Rafe nodded. "The doctor who couldn't save Mother's life."

Gabriel looked from Jim to Rafe and back to Jim. "I can see why you might think that," he said slowly. "At the time I thought that both he and his midwife were total incompetents. But I didn't kill them. I paid them to leave South Africa and to stay away.

"The doctor I employed to replace him... I searched for a man with an excellent reputation. But even he was unable to save the lives of everyone who gave birth. After the first of those deaths, I realized that I had possibly been too hasty in forming an opinion of total incompetence on the part of the man he replaced. Though I would never have been able to trust him again, after my wife died."

"Death in childbirth, especially in poor areas of the settled world, is surprisingly common," Blair said.

"I can understand that, in those parts of the world where medical help is limited," Gabriel said quietly. "But our community had a doctor and my wife had medical care throughout her pregnancy."

"Some people don't always realize when there's something wrong with them," Blair said.

"Or they've been brought up to believe that complaining about a pain of any kind is a sign of hypochondria," Jim added. "My father was like that. My brother went for nearly a week when he was ten, walking on a broken leg, with our father telling him all the time he was showing weakness by limping, just because he'd banged his leg, before our housekeeper decided that there really was something wrong, took him to the ER and brought him home wearing a cast.

"So it's possible that your wife didn't feel well but didn't think it was anything serious, and so didn't mention it to the doctor - when it actually was serious."

Gabriel nodded slowly. "She never wanted to worry me," he admitted. Rafe quietly put a hand over his father's, trying to offer a comfort that he knew was fully quarter of a century too late, but which the Man would have rejected at the time.

Gabriel, Rafe reflected, had matured a lot in the last few years - and he was mildly amused at the thought. Twenty years earlier, he had believed that his father was all-knowing, strong, invincible... hell, even a few short weeks earlier he had described Gabriel as one of 'the movers and shakers' of his world, fully believing it. Now Rafe realized that his all-powerful father's life had basically been lived in fear; he had been afraid to show anything that might be considered a weakness.

His public face might still be one of ruthless efficiency; but he was no longer afraid of showing affection for his son, at least in private; no longer afraid of - yes, trusting - men that his son trusted. And Rafe could understand why Gabriel might seem to be holding his family at a distance; his enemies might think to influence him by threatening anyone they had reason to believe Gabriel was fond of. And for the first time, Rafe found himself wondering if his father's enemies had actually influenced the doctor who had 'let his mother die', in the hope of weakening Gabriel. Well, if so, they had failed.

"Rafael tells me that the orders for the lilies to be sent from 'Angelus' are delivered to the flower shops overnight," Gabriel went on, looking at Jim.

"Yes, sir. We've mounted surveillance, obviously, but - " He shook his head. "We don't have the manpower to devote to just one case that - frankly - has almost gone cold."

***

Dan Wolf had finally released the body of the man whose cause of death he had found difficult to determine, saying that it appeared to have been a fast metabolizing poison; and Simon authorized surveillance of all the florists in Cascade.

None of the men (or women) watching reported seeing anyone approaching the shops... but the flowers from 'Angelus' were delivered on the morning of the funeral.

When the funeral director contacted the police to let them know, Rafe quietly passed on the word to his father.

Jim was furious, and spent several minutes on the deep breathing Blair had taught him to calm himself down. Blair himself sat thinking for a moment, then picked up the phone.

He dialed the number of the funeral director involved, and asked for the name of the florist who had delivered the lilies. He wrote it down, thanked the man, and hung up. Then he crossed to Rhonda.

She smiled at him. "Hello, Blair."

"Rhonda... could you contact Captain Rattery's secretary, and ask her who was assigned to watch 'Flowers for all Occasions'."

"No problem," she said.

Blair could see the question in her eyes. "None of the men on surveillance reported seeing anyone approaching the shops they were watching, but lilies were delivered from 'Flowers for all Occasions' for the funeral of Henry Barton," he said. "We need to have a word with whoever was watching it."

The watchers turned out to be a fairly young Patrol officer, Nat Michael, and his even younger, just qualified, rookie partner, Will Black. Blair reported this to Simon, who contacted Captain Rattery, asking if he could have a word with the two men.

Questioned, the two admitted that faced with what they knew would be a long, boring night, they had decided to 'split' the watch, with Black sleeping for the first half of the surveillance, and Michael the second. Both insisted that they had stayed alert during their hours of watching, and both claimed to have seen nobody approaching the shop.

Jim, watching closely for any physical reactions from the two, detected nothing; unless one had uncommonly good control over his physical responses, both were telling the truth.

So how could 'Angelus' have delivered the order unseen?

***

Rafe - as had become his habit in the last few days - went to have a meal with his father, and told him what had happened.

Gabriel frowned slightly. "Nat Michael?" he said. "Nat... short for Nathaniel?"

"Could be," Rafe agreed.

"It could be coincidence... but... "

"But?"

"The doctor who let your mother die was called Michael... Joel Michael; and he had three sons... Samiel, Ariel and Nathaniel. He... when his oldest son was born, he asked me if I would object to him giving his son the name of an angel, because Michael was also an archangel. It was something of a compliment, that he wanted his son to be named the same way as you, my son. So I offered no objection. He called his second son Ariel and the third, born just two or three weeks before your mother died was Nathaniel...

"If Joel Michael came to America... "

"I have to mention this to Ellison," Rafe said. "Because... quite apart from Nat Michael, there's a man in Forensics called Sam Michael... "

"Sam... Samiel?"

Rafe nodded. "Seems a likely abbreviation, doesn't it?"

They let the subject drop, choosing neutral subjects to discuss as they ate, and afterwards lingered over coffee. Finally, almost reluctantly, Rafe headed for home.

***

In the morning, Rafe joined Jim at his desk.

"I spoke to my father last night," he said. "Told him what Michael and Black had said. And he told me... the doctor he blamed for my mother's death was called Joel Michael. He had three sons - the youngest was called Nathaniel."

"Nat?" Jim asked.

"And the oldest son was Samiel - and we've got Sam Michael in Forensics. The middle son was called Ariel - not sure how that could be abbreviated."

Blair, who had joined them, said slowly, "There's Mike Michael on Dan's staff. He could have abbreviated his second name to get a reasonable using name."

"And that puts two of them in a position to know when a body is being released... " Rafe said softly.

"And Nat in a position to tell the truth about not seeing anyone approach the shop... while he himself put the order through the letter box," Jim murmured.

"How long have they been in America?" Blair asked.

"To the best of my knowledge, probably twenty five years," Rafe said. "Assuming they came straight here from South Africa. But they might not have been in Cascade that long; they could have moved here after a few years in another part of the country. They could have been killing in the name of Angelus on the east coast for some years before they moved here... and I think it's just chance that they moved here. There's no way they could have linked me to the man who - quite literally - banished Joel Michael from South Africa."

"Let me have a quick word with Rhonda before you go to Simon," Blair said.

He headed over to the secretary. "Rhonda - I've a favor to ask you."

"You can ask me for anything," she replied.

"There are three men working for the PD - Nat Michael in Patrol, Sam Michael in Forensics, and Mike Michael in the medical examiner's department. Can you find out - what are their actual first names, and are they brothers? And how long they've been with Cascade PD, and if possible where they worked before they came here."

"Give me ten minutes." She was already reaching for her phone.

"Thanks." Blair returned to Jim and Rafe.

"Rhonda's finding out if the three are related and their full first names," Blair said, primarily for Rafe's benefit - he knew Jim would have been listening when he spoke to Rhonda.

It was actually little more than five minutes before Rhonda joined them. All three smiled a welcome.

"Well, the Michaels came here from Denver ten years ago, and yes, they are brothers. The first two have very odd names - the youngest is a bit... well, pretentious, but not as weird. Samiel, Ariel and Nathaniel. I don't blame them for shortening their names."

"Thanks, Rhonda. We owe you," Jim said. "There's just one more thing... Could you contact the Denver PD and ask them if they had a series of murders... like the Angelus ones... that suddenly stopped about ten years ago."

She stared at him for a moment, open-mouthed. "You think that they are responsible... ?"

"It's circumstantial, and there's a nearly ten-year gap - as far as we know - since they left Denver; unless they've been killing in nearby cities when they're officially off duty. But Captain Banks did contact the police in nearby cities recently, and hasn't had any response..."

"I'll do it now," Rhonda said, and moved back to her desk.

***

It took a little longer than her earlier check, and there was a slightly stunned expression on her face when she again rejoined Jim, Blair and Rafe.

"You were right," she said. "They had several deaths of criminals, with flowers from 'Angelus' sent to the funerals, over a period of some two years; but then the killings stopped... ten years ago."

"They were here... Wonder what they were doing in the years before they began again," Jim said. "We definitely owe you, Rhonda."  He took a deep breath. "Now to report this to Simon..."

***

Simon moved quickly, and in less than an hour the three Michael brothers found themselves being questioned.

The realization that they had been identified as the 'Angelus' killer shattered their defiance.

Their parents were now dead, although they had been able to continue their work as doctor and midwife when they entered America.

Looking for reparation for their parents' exile from South Africa, they had indeed hoped that Gabriel Angelus would somehow be blamed for the deaths. The fact that they themselves had good, well-paying jobs in America didn't seem to have occurred to them. They had chosen to kill criminals, believing that they were no loss to society - Jim secretly agreed, but murder was still murder.

They were each given a ten-year prison sentence, and were sent to separate prisons to serve their time.

Gabriel Angelus stayed in America long enough to see justice done and then, bidding his son and his son's friends a grateful farewell, he left to return to his own land.

And Rafe relaxed, happy in the knowledge that his father did love him and was proud of him; and that he - and Jim and Blair - were welcome to visit Gabriel if they ever wanted a vacation in South Africa.

He wasn't sure that Jim and Blair would ever want to visit South Africa; but he knew that he would be happy to do so, and spend time with his father. But it would only be for an occasional visit.

South Africa was no longer his home. Cascade was, and he knew he would have it no other way.

 


End file.
